Friday, July 22, 2016

Last week
the City of Vancouver announced dramatic increases for West End resident
parking permits. While many local residents were outraged, I was delighted.

In
September 2014, I wrote about the ridiculously low resident parking permit fees
in a column that looked at a
variety of parking complaints around the city.

“It is
not as if residents are paying a lot for these spaces… In the West End the
permit fee is $73.40. This is not per month. This is per year. Meanwhile,
nearby apartment garages built at the city’s insistence often have vacant
spaces since it’s so much cheaper for tenants to buy a permit and park on the
street.”

While I
doubt my column was the catalyst for the city’s recent proposal, it got me
thinking about all the other suggestions I have offered the city in previous
Courier columns.

Below are
suggestions from four other 2014 columns. In some cases, the city took my advice.
But in far too many, it didn’t.

In May
2014 I wrote about the loss of
character homes on Vancouver’s West Side and offered a suggestion on what
should be done. “Builders
could be encouraged to retain older character houses by being allowed to build
and sell a coach house equal in size to the unused density.”

Sadly,
since writing this column, hundreds of delightful character homes have been
demolished. Meanwhile, city planners advise they are studying the problem and
hope to come forth with a solution in the near future. Sadly, for many other
character houses, it will not be soon enough.

In June
2014, I wrote about the need for
the city to take better care to keep our streets and parks clean. Of particular
concern was discarded chewing gum and cigarette butts, unsightly weeds, and
garbage strewn about the streets. I offered a number of suggestions:

“I would
like to see more waste receptacles around the city, especially in the Downtown
Eastside… and companies should install more ‘cigarette posts’ and ashtrays,
especially outside transit stations, office buildings and venues where smokers
gather.” To keep
Vancouver beautiful, I recommended that the city embark on an awareness
campaign to change behaviour. “Developers and builders should know they are
expected to properly maintain properties held for redevelopment. Absentee
owners should be told to arrange for gardening services.”

While we
have made some progress in getting developers and absentee owners to maintain
vacant properties, Vancouver’s streets generally look worse, not better than
two years ago. If you agree, I hope you will speak up, too.

In July
2014, I wrote about the unnecessary
and disturbing noises around our city.

Since
then, the number of Lamborghinis and other noisy, expensive sports cars has
increased. If these vehicle owners will not stop trying to draw attention to
themselves by racing away from stop signs and traffic lights, I hope the city
will ultimately do something through its noise bylaw. In the meanwhile, we will
just have to give inconsiderate drivers nasty looks.

Also in
July 2014, I responded to Mayor Gregor
Robertson’s two promises to buy the Arbutus Corridor and Granville Island. I
suggested that the city not buy the Arbutus Corridor, since the price would be
much higher than the city was offering, and it could get the lands for nothing
by transferring density rights. However, the city proceeded with the purchase,
at more than double the price.

With
regard to Granville Island, I told the city to give up on the idea of
purchasing the property since it did not have the money to buy and carry out
all the much needed infrastructure improvements. Moreover, the federal
government was not going to sell it.

I did
recommend that the city participate on a reinvigorated Granville Island Trust
and contribute to effective local decision-making.

Fortunately,
the mayor followed my advice and the city dropped plans to buy the property. I
should add that the city manager is participating on the Granville Island 2040
Plan Advisory Board, on which I am also proud to serve.

Friday, July 8, 2016

If you
are like most Vancouver residents, you rarely take taxis unless you are going
to the airport or picking up your car after servicing at the dealership. However,
if you lived in New York, London, or most other world cities, you would likely
be taking taxis on a regular basis. That is because they have a ‘taxi culture.’
People consider taxis as an important means of transportation.

Vancouver
does not have a ‘taxi culture.’

I first
wrote about the need to improve Vancouver’s taxi service during a 2007
around-the-world trip when I had occasion to use taxis in more than 30
countries. In New Zealand a taxi from our hotel to a restaurant cost $8. The
return trip, taking a similar route cost $12. When I questioned the additional
cost, the driver asked if the first cab was as nice a car.

“No it
wasn’t,” I replied.

He then
asked if the driver was wearing a jacket and tie, like he was.

“No he
wasn’t, I replied.

He then
went on to explain that New Zealand had deregulated the taxi system and
companies could offer different levels of service at different price levels.
“Just like a plane or train,” he added.

The
concept of offering different levels of service at different rates has always
struck me as being very reasonable.

In
Sophia, Bulgaria I remember picking up a cab at the train station to our hotel.
When I asked the driver what it would cost, he pointed to the windshield where
the rates were clearly posted. Having no knowledge of the local currency I got
in the cab and watched the meter start to spin. By the time we arrived the fare
was $23. I thought it was a lot.

That
evening the hotel arranged for a taxi to take us to a downtown restaurant near
the train station. The fare was $4. The return fare was about the same. When I
mentioned this to the hotel manager, he told me that in Sophia taxis could
charge whatever they wanted, as long as the fare was clearly posted. Most
locals had the good sense not to use the cabs waiting at the train station!

At the
time I was concerned that except during weekend evenings, North Shore, Surrey
or Richmond taxis bringing fares into Vancouver were not allowed to take fares
back to their home municipalities. Furthermore, Vancouver taxis are often
reluctant to take fares to distant parts of Metro Vancouver since they too are
restricted from bringing fares back to the city.

Having
often waited for a cab, I was not surprised to learn Vancouver has the lowest ratio
of taxis per capita of any major Canadian city, and fares are approximately 15
per cent higher.

I found
it significant that not one new taxi company had been allowed to enter the
Vancouver market in 25 years. Compare this with any other retail or service
industry.

I have
again been thinking about taxis since attending a recent Greater Vancouver
Board of Trade luncheon with Peter Gall, Q.C., counsel to the Vancouver Taxi
Association. The
session was billed as an opportunity for the association to present its
solutions to better meet the needs of the public.

For many
years, the Board of Trade has had concerns about the taxi industry. Under
president and CEO Iain Black, it commissioned a paper that revealed Vancouver
would need to add 1,900 new taxis just to meet what is on the road in Calgary. It went
on to recommend a number of changes to the regulatory framework which would
allow taxis and ride sharing services to co-exist.

While
many in attendance at the Board of Trade luncheon wanted to see major changes
and improvements, Mr. Gall was protective of the industry, noting that taxi
drivers have invested $500 million in the 800 licenses currently in existence. Many
challenged this position, noting that in other sunset industries, investors
have lost out when their industry became obsolete. Just ask the owners of
Blockbuster Video.

If
Vancouver is to truly become a less car-oriented region, we must improve our
taxi system. Hopefully, the province will pay attention to the Board of Trade’s
recommendations.